Effects of sea buckthorn procyanidins on healing of acetic acid-induced lesions in the rat stomach.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of sea buckthorn procyanidins (SBPC) on healing of acetic acid-induced lesions in the rat stomach and its possible mechanism. The sea buckthorn procyanidins (SBPC) were extracted with 60% alcohol/H2O from sea buckthorn bark and purified by macropore adsorption resin column, with a purity of >96%. The chemical character of SBPC was analyzed by reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS). Chronic gastric ulceration was induced by injecting acetic acid into the subserosa of stomach. Different concentrations of SBPC were orally administrated to gastric ulcers rats. After treatment 7d and 14d, rats were sacrificed respectively. The healing of the acetic acid induced ulcerations was measured by ulcer index (UI). The level of epidermal growth factor (EGF) in plasma was determined; the expression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) around ulcer was detected by immunohistochemical method. SBPC was found to reduce the size of the ulcers at day 7 and 14 in a dose-dependent manner. Compared with the control, the UI of SBPC group was significantly lower (p< 0.01) and the level of EGF in the plasma of SBPC group increased significantly (p< 0.01), meanwhile the expression of EGFR and PCNA around ulcer in high-dose SBPC stomach were enhanced (p< 0.05). The results implied that SBPC plays an important role in healing of acetic acid-induced gastric lesions possibly by the acceleration of the mucosal repair.